What is Adrenal Dysfunction?

What is Adrenal Dysfunction?

The adrenal glands sit on top of the kidneys and make adrenaline (norepinephrine and epinephrine) some testosterone, and finally cortisol (a steroid).  When someone is stressed over time, their body goes through three stages of adrenal dysfunction.  

Stage 1 is where there is constant stress and the cortisol is high and doesn’t drop down like it’s supposed to.  This can make you feel “wired” all the time.  It can also make it hard to sleep at night, which will eventually lead to the next stage.

Stage 2 is when you have normal cortisol but other markers like DHEA are dropping, and when stressed, your body doesn’t respond properly.  We start seeing problems staying asleep as cortisol spikes at the wrong time and fatigue, especially in the afternoons, starts showing up

Stage 3 This is the last stage and people are just tired almost all the time, especially at 2-3 in the afternoon.  You feel “tired but wired” with stress.  Your adrenaline production is working, but you are not making cortisol.  The body is in a “survive vs. thrive” mindset.  

Adrenal fatigue is a self-protection mechanism.  You don’t want to drive a car 60 mph in 2nd gear for long, and the body is no different.  You have to tell the body it is safe through stress management techniques like meditation and getting at least 8 hours of sleep.   Using a saliva cortisol test is helpful to determine where your cortisol is relative to normal so that is a good place to start with a diagnosis.  Also, making sure there is no sleep apnea is paramount.  Once you have found a cause, there are also supplements that help at each stage.

Stage 1- Adrenal Balancer- This is mainly adaptogenic herbs which work on the brain to calm down the response to stress and help heal the adrenal gland.

Stage 2- Adrenal Assist- more focused on improving your energy while also healing the adrenals.

Stage 3 – Adrenal Power Up- Lots of kick in this one.  Recommend taking at awakening, noon, and again at 3 PM.  This mimics our natural cortisol cycle and will help get you moving.  

Adrenal fatigue, or adrenal dysfunction, is really a brain hormone issue, and the adrenals are not really damaged.  It can recover quickly if you follow the above recommendations.

Men, Prioritize your Health

Men, Prioritize your Health

After practicing medicine over 20 years, I think there is a reason we see women live longer.  Women prioritize their health and focus more on preventative care than men do. 

Men tend to take the ostrich approach and bury their heads in the sand and hope everything turns out all right.  Unfortunately, that method of healthcare stinks because by the time we get the memo that things are seriously wrong with our health, it is too late.  Think of your health as a retirement account.  The sooner you invest, the greater the benefit.  It is never too late to invest, but the older you get the more effort it requires to get the same benefit as the person who started early.   

What are some things that pay huge dividends in your health investment account and prevent major diseases?

Exercise, sleep, stress management (meditation), avoiding dental issues (a big source of inflammation for the heart), and getting labs that show how well you are doing health-wise, like fasting insulin, fractionated lipids, and inflammation markers.  Now that is where a good functional medicine doctor comes in. We actually understand these issues and labs and interpret them for you, so we can head off disease and practice true prevention.